Kumar, Martha Joynt (Towson University)

Before the Oath: How George W. Bush and Barack Obama Managed a Transfer of Power Kumar, Martha Joynt (Towson University)

Commendation Quotes: The seminal book on presidential transition, "Before the Oath" will enhance the body of knowledge surrounding transitions and prove very helpful to future transition teams. Commendation Quotes:"Martha Kumar has more inside White House experience and is better qualified to write this book than any other scholar. She has made herself a resource on presidential transitions, providing candidate transition teams from both parties historical and analytical material on transitions and White House organizations. The book's scope of analysis is comprehensive. Kumar provides an excellent developmental view of presidential transitions from legal, political, administrative, and legislative perspectives. Commendation Quotes: No one knows more about presidential transitions than Martha Kumar does. In "Before the Oath," the lessons Kumar gleans from the Obama transition reflect her sensible, nuanced, and sophisticated understanding of politics. This volume is an essential contribution to the study of presidential transitions."Biographical Note: Martha Joynt Kumar is a professor of political science at Towson University. She is the author of "Managing the President's Message: The White House Communications Operation," winner of the American Political Science Association's 2008 Richard E. Neustadt Best Book Award, and the coauthor of "Portraying the President: The White House and the News Media""Commendation Quotes: Martha Kumar has more inside White House experience and is better qualified to write this book than any other scholar. She has made herself a resource on presidential transitions, providing candidate transition teams from both parties historical and analytical material on transitions and White House organizations. The book's scope of analysis is comprehensive. Kumar provides an excellent developmental view of presidential transitions from legal, political, administrative, and legislative perspectives. Brief Description: "Having watched from a front row seat as many incumbent and electoral campaign presidential teams managed administration transitions, Martha Kumar was struck by how productively the Bush and Obama teams worked together to effect a smooth transition of power in 2008. She has reflected upon what made the transition so effective, and wonders if it could be a model for future incoming and outgoing administrations. This book focuses on the preparations made by President Bush's transition team as well as those by Senators Obama and McCain as one administration exited and the other entered the White House. Using this recent transition as a lens through which to examine the presidential transition process, Kumar simultaneously outlines the congressional legislation that paved the way for this distinctive transition and interweaves comparative examples from previous administrative transitions going back to Truman-to-Eisenhower. She evaluates the early and continuing actions by the General Services Administration to plan and set up transition offices; the work on financial disclosure issues handled by the Office of Government Ethics; and the Office of Management and Budget's preparatory work. In this fascinating historical and contemporary vivisection of presidential transitions, Kumar maps out, in the words of former NSA advisor General James L. Jones, the characteristics of a smooth "glide path" for presidential campaign staffs and their administrations"--Marc Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.; Having watched from a front row seat as many incumbent and electoral campaign presidential teams managed administration transitions, Martha Kumar was struck by how productively the Bush and Obama teams worked together to effect a smooth transition of power in 2008. She has reflected upon what made the transition so effective, and wonders if it could be a model for future incoming and outgoing administrations. This book focuses on the preparations made by President Bush's transition team as well as those by Senators Obama and McCain as one administration exited and the other entered the White House. Using this recent transition as a lens through which to examine the presidential transition process, Kumar simultaneously outlines the congressional legislation that paved the way for this distinctive transition and interweaves comparative examples from previous administrative transitions going back to Truman-to-Eisenhower. She evaluates the early and continuing actions by the General Services Administration to plan and set up transition offices;the work on financial disclosure issues handled by the Office of Government Ethics;and the Office of Management and Budget's preparatory work. In this fascinating historical and contemporary vivisection of presidential transitions, Kumar maps out, in the words of former NSA advisor General James L. Jones, the characteristics of a smooth glide path for presidential campaign staffs and their administrations--; Provided by publisher. Publisher Marketing: It's one of the hallmarks of American democracy: on inauguration day, the departing president heeds the will of the people and hands the keys to power to a successor. The transition from one administration to the next sounds simple, even ceremonial. But in 2009, as President George W. Bush briefed President-elect Barack Obama about the ongoing wars and plummeting economy he'd soon inherit, the Bush team revealed that they were grappling with a late-breaking threat to the presidency: U. S. intelligence sources believed that a terror group with links to Al Qaeda planned to attack the National Mall during the inaugural festivities. Although this violence never materialized, its possibility made it clear that well-laid contingency plans were essential. Political scientist Martha Joynt Kumar uncovered this secret peril while interviewing senior Bush and Obama advisers for her latest book. In "Before the Oath," Kumar documents how two presidential teams--one outgoing, the other incoming--must forge trusting alliances in order to help the new president succeed in his or her first term. Kumar enjoyed unprecedented access to several incumbent and candidate transition team members, and she combines in-depth scholarship with one-on-one interviews to put readers squarely behind the scenes. Using the Bush-Obama handoff as a lens through which to examine the presidential transition process, Kumar interweaves examples from previous administrations as far back as Truman-Eisenhower. Her subjects describe in vivid detail the challenges of sowing campaign ideals across a sprawling executive branch as Congress, the media, and external events press in. Kumar's lively account of lessons learned and pitfalls encountered during past presidential transitions provides an essential road map for presidential aspirants and their advisers, as well as campaign workers, federal employees, and political appointees.

Contributor Bio:  Kumar, Martha Joynt Martha Joynt Kumar is a professor of political science at Towson University and the author and coauthor of several books on the media and the presidency, including the 1981 classic Portraying the President: The White House and the Media, also published by Johns Hopkins.